Religion is to blame for all of this. Violence in the name of God is immoral.
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I don't have any sympathy for hotel owners charging 900 $ a night for a room in a place like this one (considering local wages, property costs, etc...). The article is misleading in implying that such people's redistribute their earnings to the community : this is is the fallacious trickle-down economics which triumphed in the US with Reagan. Difference is that lower classes there are in far worse situation than in the US. Morally it's far worse.
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@BB "Rooms spread across 50 acres were booked continuously, often by celebrities and business tycoons", notice the type of people that visit the hotel and resort? So $900 a night isn't an outlandish amount for a celebrity or business tycoon.
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In the days and hours after the bombings I probably would have cancelled a holiday to Sri Lanka. Not now though. The bombers seem to have been a very small group who are now under intense scrutiny. The wanted to disrupt tourism. It would be a shame if people gave them what they wanted.
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I'd probably be as worried about the plane as terrorism. Might get a trip in while it's cheap.
Tourism will come back, it's just whether the people in Sri Lanka can survive in the meantime or if they have to start over. Bali was hit pretty badly, but the tourists came back. I don't see why this would be different.
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If hotels want to have guests, they should charge more reasonable prices. They could fill up all the rooms if normal people could afford to stay there. $900 a night? For a place that is FOUR HOURS from the nearest beach? Why would anyone do that in the first place? Terrorism might not be their only problem.
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@Nadia, plus their employees rely on tips of up to 70% for their wages. You would think that $900/night could more than pay a living wage for their employees.
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@Nadia "Rooms spread across 50 acres were booked continuously, often by celebrities and business tycoons", notice the type of people that visit the hotel and resort? So $900 a night isn't an outrageous amount for a celebrity or business tycoon.
@Nadia Sri Lanka offers much more than just scenic beaches. Read up on "Kandy, Sri Lanka".
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We have cancelled plans for a lengthy stay in Sri Lanka. It is unsafe to travel there. No need to be heroic on a holiday.
@Milton Lewis I don't think anybody's trying to be heroic.
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Um. Do people ever think about their own problems? The United States ranks very high in danger and violence. You never know when someone is going to start shooting. It is this randomness that inspires fear. I still spend summers in the US for the weather, but after a lifetime of traveling around the world with a backpack (including Sri Lanka) it is not a country where I feel safer. Anything but.
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Looking out at the ocean from the spot where the tsunami came ashore in 2004 killing approximately 1700 people on a train, just a small fraction of the 230,000 who died throughout SE Asia in a matter of hours, one can only appreciate the unpredictability of life and death. One off or two off, we should not let fear of death by natural or mind made disaster stand in our way - but of course we do. Just look at how denizens of the Home of the Brave resisted getting back on airplanes after 9/11.
Sri Lanka is a beautiful island with a rich cultural heritage. Take a stand and see for yourself.
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Any intelligent tourist will choose to avoid countries where bombs are going off in hotels and churches. It is basic common sense. There is no shortage of peaceful and safe tourist destinations.
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Is it better here where anyone can start suddenly shooting for any reason? How do you avoid that? Comments like this just go to serve a smug American exceptionalism based on no objective consideration. And safety and security do not exist for mortals.
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Having been a citizen in this country for 57 years and living in big cities and the nations capital I am indeed an American. My country is still the greatest country in the world and i live it. No fear, you should try this attitude. I don't agree with all our policies or current politics, but, yes, I have been around the world and travel a lot, including much time in Mexico and i will avoid the temptation for detailed comparisons. I am mortal and yes i am quite safe, especially in comparison. No negatives for good sense until the situation is better understood. Seems like lots of anger guy...
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@A Cynic
You're right!
That's why we don't go to New York, because of planes hitting the building. We don't go to the Churches in the south because someone is going to come with an assault rifle and go on a rampage. As much as I love running, I don't participate on Marathon especially the Boston one. We stay away from Vegas concerts because of snipers taking casual shots at part goers. I don't like working in the US because of disgruntling employees and guns. Yes, you're absolutely right, why would any intelligent person want to visit the USA?
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No, the Sri Lanka bombing is not like Paris or London. The Sri Lankan government had been warned about the bombings and did nothing. That’s why tourists are staying away. The Sri Lankan government has proven it is incapable of protecting tourists. Even when it knows a bombing will happen. That’s just plain incompetence and the only one to blame is their own President.
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@Mike L Wrong. It is just like the Paris attacks because France too was warned by intelligence agencies in Turkey, Iraq and Israel of "an imminent attack on France" months beforehand but the French authorities ignored it. Maybe double check your information before you decide to post a comment.
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I visited Sri Lanka one year ago and was taken by the beauty of the landscapes, the melding of cultures, the delicious food, and the kindness of the people. I would definitely return as there is so much more to see. My heart grieves for all of the people I met along the way, and for the lives lost from these vile acts.
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This really sad; those bombers are hurting their own people!
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@John Carrington They don't see these people as their own people. Why would they? Most of the people that live in Sri Lanka aren't Muslims and don't believe in their Wahhabi and Salafi ideology. They are people who have been inspired by foreign beliefs and feel more loyal to that cause than the country that they were born in.
Terrorists do not care what is going to happen to locaal public. Shi-Lanka used to be a very peaceful island. After civil war, they made an agreement. People of Shri-Lanka is so nice that you will not fight great hospitality any where else . I would suggest all that do not afraid of terrorism. If you afraid they will terrorize more. Please help them to build their tourists business, God bless Shri-Lanka.
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When on a trip around the world 26 YAG, I stayed at a place on the coast just below Colombo called Unawatuna for US $ 15 a night. No AC of course, the hotel's restaurant was on the beach and open and their fish dishes were incredible. No security issues then and the people who lived there were incredibly friendly. There were tensions with India, so no one went to the North East side of Sri Lanka.
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You wouldn't think that a luxury resort miles away from religious terrorist bombings would be so impacted.
I guess that this is what terrorism accomplishes, terrorizing people. However I'm afraid that an article like this about a specific location may be read by the wrong people, who may decide to bomb the hotel a year from now after guests return. This may have put a bulls eye on the place.
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"Officials are scrambling to contain the fallout. The bombings were a one-time event, they say..." Unfortunately, history shows this is not true. There will be more. For ISIS, mission accomplished.
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Sri Lanka is clearly a gorgeous, rich place and presents the rare tourist opportunity right now of having the facilities to house tourists...without the other tourists. Ms. Errington obviously made a brilliant choice in going against the flow and maintaining her plans. I wish I was visiting Sri Lanka this very minute.
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@Aaron
I really grateful for your comment, Im a 34 year old boy who were working in tourism. Its very hard time for me. Dont know what to do. Some of my friends who have money they find jobs out of the country...
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Not long ago, Santani resort in Sri Lanka made it onto Time magazine’s 100 best places to visit list. It is a testament to the vision of the founder and his team who built Sri Lanka’s first luxury wellness resort from scratch. Heartbreaking to now see the ripple effect from the Easter Sunday bomb attacks cascade down and impact the livelihoods of all those involved in the running of Santani. This sad picture is doubtless being mirrored in countless hotels and tourist establishments across the island as tourists (understandably) stay away for the time being. I hope and pray that, in time, the bounce back in visitors travelling to Sri Lanka will be stronger. As a frequent visitor to, and soon to be resident of, this resplendent isle, I shall look forward to experiencing the legendary Santani hospitality first hand later this year.
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